SACRED |
Paganism background
The Sacred Feminine
By Formosa Lan
What is Paganism? The history of Paganism looks as far back as prehistoric communities. Its beliefs often emphasize their relationship with ancestral religions, and and reverence for nature. They insist on the value of literal inheritance from ancestors and places. They find their inspiration from the literature of ancient Assyria, Egypt, Greece, Rome, alongside deities referred to in Icelandic, Scandinavian, and Anglo-Saxon sagas, poetry and histories. For example, the work of people like Margaret Murray, Gerald Gardner, and Margot Adler.
Some modern forms of Paganism have their roots in 19th century C.E. European nationalism (including the British Order of Druids), but most contemporary Pagan groups trace their immediate organizational roots to the 1960s, and have an emphasis on a spiritual interest in nature.
Adapting from the diversity of traditions and many ancient ideas to fit with modernity, this has simply helped shaping today's Paganism. Despite these assertions of linkages to ancestral, pre-Christian religions, most Pagans are happy to acknowledge that Paganism is a new religion. Wicca is also the most widely recognized type of Paganism that draws inspiration from Christian, European rituals and beliefs.
One of the common beliefs in Paganism is the divine presence in nature and the reverence of the natural order in life. Spiritual growth is related to the cycles of the Earth and great emphasis is placed on ecological concerns. Paganism draws on ancient and modern practices and ideas to engage with some of these concerns such as environmental crisis.
Different Pagans believe different things. Some are polytheistic; they take aspects and deities from Ancient Egyptian religion or Norse tradition, for example. Others, such as Dianic Wiccans, believe in just one deity.
Pagan traditional practices are done to aim to revive many of the lost rituals of the ancient traditions, including "holy days and seasonal celebrations." Besides Nature, many Pagans also worship a variety of gods and goddesses, creating their own religious structure, including spirits which can represent national and local heroes as well as deceased family members. In this sense, many Pagans try to honor their ancestry and ancestors.
This is a statue of Ancient Goddess, also known as Brigit's Well in The Celtic Room. This is taken at the Goddess Temple, Reception, where Priestesses can provide informations on their upcoming events, classes, spiritual workshops for specifically women visitors. Photo credits belongs to Formosa Lan.
“Empowering Women as the world’s natural spiritual authority..” -The Goddess Temple of O.C
The Goddess Temple of Orange County is a women-centered temple located in Irvine, CA. The Temple is 3,200 square feet of beautiful, muti-roomed sacred space dedicated to honoring and celebrating the first form of spirituality expressed by humanity: Goddess.
"Goddess is a female divine being."
Historically, as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam evolved, the Pagan religions were suppressed and the female principle was gradually driven out of religion. Women were considered inferior to men. The God, King, Priest & Father replaced the Goddess, Queen, Priestess & Mother. The role of women simply became restricted. And their opinions were not considered important; women were not allowed to speak in Christian churches; positions of authority in the church were limited to men. Yeshua of Nazareth (a.k.a. Jesus Christ) rejected millennia of religious tradition by treating women as equals. Therefore women played a major role in this early Christian church.
Before exploring and learn more deeper truth about the Goddess spirituality, and how it is closely linked to Pagan and Wiccan practices but Goddess worshippers can be Christian or Buddhist or from many many other tradition, I was wondering what were the most common grounds in Paganism?
Because I do not have a particular belief system, I have never heard of the Pagan path before, and did not understand much about religions. Even more, I was never fully aware of the 'feminine' perspective of divinity. How can one learn about basic human rights and issues like sexism?
However what makes the Goddess important is that, it gives women what they won’t find in any mainstream curriculum -- the sharing of the joy of the Divine and women's holy spirit. This is one of the characteristics why and what makes the Goddess so appealing today.
"Those of every faith can come together in the spirituality that all humanity once shared and care shared again: the wisdom that All is Sacred."
The Goddess Temple of Orange County is a women-centered temple located in Irvine, CA. The Temple is 3,200 square feet of beautiful, muti-roomed sacred space dedicated to honoring and celebrating the first form of spirituality expressed by humanity: Goddess.
"Goddess is a female divine being."
Historically, as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam evolved, the Pagan religions were suppressed and the female principle was gradually driven out of religion. Women were considered inferior to men. The God, King, Priest & Father replaced the Goddess, Queen, Priestess & Mother. The role of women simply became restricted. And their opinions were not considered important; women were not allowed to speak in Christian churches; positions of authority in the church were limited to men. Yeshua of Nazareth (a.k.a. Jesus Christ) rejected millennia of religious tradition by treating women as equals. Therefore women played a major role in this early Christian church.
Before exploring and learn more deeper truth about the Goddess spirituality, and how it is closely linked to Pagan and Wiccan practices but Goddess worshippers can be Christian or Buddhist or from many many other tradition, I was wondering what were the most common grounds in Paganism?
Because I do not have a particular belief system, I have never heard of the Pagan path before, and did not understand much about religions. Even more, I was never fully aware of the 'feminine' perspective of divinity. How can one learn about basic human rights and issues like sexism?
However what makes the Goddess important is that, it gives women what they won’t find in any mainstream curriculum -- the sharing of the joy of the Divine and women's holy spirit. This is one of the characteristics why and what makes the Goddess so appealing today.
"Those of every faith can come together in the spirituality that all humanity once shared and care shared again: the wisdom that All is Sacred."
This is the poster of the Goddess Timeline with an overview of goddess imagery through time scaled in thousand-year increments, from 30,000 B.C.E. to 2000 A.D. It is printed on heavier stock than typical posters. This poster is hanged against the wall for public in the Goddess Temple Reception room. Anyone who walks in room will see the posters on the wall. credits belongs to Formosa Lan.
“The women’s movement has evolved because the crisis of the eternal world is calling for the rise of the Goddess to restore the balance of
nature. All the evidence indicates that the feminine archtype is returning. This is perhaps the most important event of the last 5000 years, and its consequences may well have an immense, unimaginable effect on cultural and ecological evolution.” -Jean Houston
The feminist movement, beginning in the 1960s, provided the growth for Paganism. The simple fact is that there has historically always been gender inequality. The power of women varies from culture to culture, and it is certainly true that in some of these cultures women wielded considerably more dignity, respect, and power than they did in Medieval Europe.
In order for this feminine age to come into full accomplishment, a shift in consciousness must take place in the world.
Now I've learned that the principles of Goddess spirituality are all about gratitude and sharing and understand of the oneness of life.
Spirituality is a very wonderful, personal thing. At the Goddess Temple of Orange County, women seek empowering relationship with Divine and they can find a group of people who happen to share the same personal beliefs that simply make sense to them -- "we are all spirit energy visiting this earth to learn --" or many have taken inspiration from various belief systems and see the truth in all.
Over the course of the last thirty years or so, women began exploring religious forms that were empowering to them. The Goddess Spirituality movement particularly emphasizes feminine language and images for the Divine. The Goddess movement also has emerged in North America, West Europe, Australia and New Zealand in the 1970s. These have grown rapidly and been influential in shaping American Paganism, which women have found particularly attractive for its religious perspective that honors the earth, respects the body, and emphasizes the interconnection of all things. These new versions of history are incredibly empowering, and women everywhere continue to rediscover and develop the language that speaks to their own experience.
nature. All the evidence indicates that the feminine archtype is returning. This is perhaps the most important event of the last 5000 years, and its consequences may well have an immense, unimaginable effect on cultural and ecological evolution.” -Jean Houston
The feminist movement, beginning in the 1960s, provided the growth for Paganism. The simple fact is that there has historically always been gender inequality. The power of women varies from culture to culture, and it is certainly true that in some of these cultures women wielded considerably more dignity, respect, and power than they did in Medieval Europe.
In order for this feminine age to come into full accomplishment, a shift in consciousness must take place in the world.
Now I've learned that the principles of Goddess spirituality are all about gratitude and sharing and understand of the oneness of life.
Spirituality is a very wonderful, personal thing. At the Goddess Temple of Orange County, women seek empowering relationship with Divine and they can find a group of people who happen to share the same personal beliefs that simply make sense to them -- "we are all spirit energy visiting this earth to learn --" or many have taken inspiration from various belief systems and see the truth in all.
Over the course of the last thirty years or so, women began exploring religious forms that were empowering to them. The Goddess Spirituality movement particularly emphasizes feminine language and images for the Divine. The Goddess movement also has emerged in North America, West Europe, Australia and New Zealand in the 1970s. These have grown rapidly and been influential in shaping American Paganism, which women have found particularly attractive for its religious perspective that honors the earth, respects the body, and emphasizes the interconnection of all things. These new versions of history are incredibly empowering, and women everywhere continue to rediscover and develop the language that speaks to their own experience.
So through the exploration of ancient mythology, and with roots in contemporary feminism, women have found connection with Goddess imagery to be empowering and helpful in their lives. The “Goddess Movement” is a widespread, and it has no centralized tenets of belief. Practices vary widely, from the different names and number of goddess worshipped to the specific rituals and rites. This means that a self-identified Goddess worshiper could worship any number of different goddesses from all kinds of cultures in the world.
“In ancient times, Goddess Temples all over the world were connected; the priestesses knew of and pilgrimaged regularly over great distances to sister temples to learn from them, to bring each other freshness and new interpretations of wisdom, and to receive much-needed sustenance and support from each other for the challenges of the day." - The Goddess Temple of O.C
Today, not a lot of peoples are completely aware of this ancient tradition "among women, among priestesses, among sisters. Many people are ignorant of their own human heritage of Goddess Spirituality, priestesses, and holy wise women."
At the Goddess Temple of Irvine, CA, they aim to bring out the ancient priestess connection together for all modern religions and also encourage each individual to continue celebrating the religion of their choice.
"All women are considered capable of creating, organizing, and taking the lead in ritual, with help from others when needed. The sharing of leadership is part of the empowerment that ritual offers; the Goddess is manifest in each individual woman." - The Goddess Temple of O.C.
In the Pagan movement, many feminist covens use a model of rotating leadership as they develop alternative models of power. Like many populist reform movements, the feminist movement begins with lived experience and strongly affirms that "The personal is political." The feminist Neo-Pagan movement goes on to insist that the personal and political are also spiritual. Many women are drawn to Paganism for precisely this, as it offers positive self-image, and calls for putting spiritual ideals into practice.
Pagan priestesses are women who have practiced a Pagan spiritual path for some time and have trained in group ritual. They may serve on a local level.
Deb, one of the Priestesses at Goddess Temple, said that there is a lot of common ground between Goddess and Christians, who care about social justice, acceptance, and that as "we are all in one, and all is radical sacred."
When I asked Deb how did she begin to find her way and discovering Goddess, she said in her response: “there was a time in my life when I was just very lost and I just kept searching… I came across the Goddess Temple on the internet and I found a group of people here..And overtime, I found the Goddess as a spiritual outlet for me.”
“I have always been a feminist.” She said.
"The Goddess is like a metaphor that reminds us of the female side of spirituality... It is a feminine view of deity."
Goddess Spirituality merges spirituality and politics, and makes for a strong involvement in social justice issues as part of a holistic way of life. Like other women practitioners at the Temple, Deb found her path where she can apply feminism to her spiritual lives. Most importantly, it offers her the sharing of the joy of the Divine and women's holy spirit.
In this way I never fully understood the experience of sacred could offer women the spiritual path, like what Deb was searching for, and a way of being a feminist in the world.
“In ancient times, Goddess Temples all over the world were connected; the priestesses knew of and pilgrimaged regularly over great distances to sister temples to learn from them, to bring each other freshness and new interpretations of wisdom, and to receive much-needed sustenance and support from each other for the challenges of the day." - The Goddess Temple of O.C
Today, not a lot of peoples are completely aware of this ancient tradition "among women, among priestesses, among sisters. Many people are ignorant of their own human heritage of Goddess Spirituality, priestesses, and holy wise women."
At the Goddess Temple of Irvine, CA, they aim to bring out the ancient priestess connection together for all modern religions and also encourage each individual to continue celebrating the religion of their choice.
"All women are considered capable of creating, organizing, and taking the lead in ritual, with help from others when needed. The sharing of leadership is part of the empowerment that ritual offers; the Goddess is manifest in each individual woman." - The Goddess Temple of O.C.
In the Pagan movement, many feminist covens use a model of rotating leadership as they develop alternative models of power. Like many populist reform movements, the feminist movement begins with lived experience and strongly affirms that "The personal is political." The feminist Neo-Pagan movement goes on to insist that the personal and political are also spiritual. Many women are drawn to Paganism for precisely this, as it offers positive self-image, and calls for putting spiritual ideals into practice.
Pagan priestesses are women who have practiced a Pagan spiritual path for some time and have trained in group ritual. They may serve on a local level.
Deb, one of the Priestesses at Goddess Temple, said that there is a lot of common ground between Goddess and Christians, who care about social justice, acceptance, and that as "we are all in one, and all is radical sacred."
When I asked Deb how did she begin to find her way and discovering Goddess, she said in her response: “there was a time in my life when I was just very lost and I just kept searching… I came across the Goddess Temple on the internet and I found a group of people here..And overtime, I found the Goddess as a spiritual outlet for me.”
“I have always been a feminist.” She said.
"The Goddess is like a metaphor that reminds us of the female side of spirituality... It is a feminine view of deity."
Goddess Spirituality merges spirituality and politics, and makes for a strong involvement in social justice issues as part of a holistic way of life. Like other women practitioners at the Temple, Deb found her path where she can apply feminism to her spiritual lives. Most importantly, it offers her the sharing of the joy of the Divine and women's holy spirit.
In this way I never fully understood the experience of sacred could offer women the spiritual path, like what Deb was searching for, and a way of being a feminist in the world.
Webpage by Formosa Lan